


Shelter

by niallsecretluvr



Category: 5 Seconds of Summer (Band)
Genre: AU, Alternate Universe, sad!Michael, theres a happy ending tho
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-03-10
Updated: 2016-03-10
Packaged: 2018-05-25 23:59:59
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,821
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/6215443
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/niallsecretluvr/pseuds/niallsecretluvr
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>i work at the animal shelter and you always come in to pet the cats when you’re sad AU</p><p>OR</p><p>This random guy keeps coming into the shelter to watch the kittens and Luke is worried.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Shelter

“Morning Luke.” The lady behind the counter greeted Luke.

“Morning Ms. Delilah.” Luke said, smiling at his boss. He made his way into the back and took of his coat. He put it on the coat hanger and walked back out to the main lobby.

“Luke dear, you wouldn’t mind working on your own for a couple hours, would you?” Ms. Delilah asked.

“Of course not. You know I love it here.” Luke smiled.

“I’m glad to hear that. I’m actually going to meet my friend in the city a couple hours away. We haven’t seen each other since high school. Now that’s been awhile.” Ms. Delilah said, emphasizing her point with her hand gestures.

Luke nodded, not wanting to comment and accidentally offend her.

“So it’s okay that you’re here alone?” She asked, mild concern in her eyes.

“I’ll be just fine Ms. Delilah. Go enjoy yourself.” Luke smiled, causing her face to light up.

“Bless you dear. I’ll try to be back before close, but if not—”

“I know how to close up. I’ve got it Ms. Delilah.” Luke said.

“Thank you.” She said before leaving the pet store and heading out onto the streets.

Luke was about to sit down when he heard a whine come from one of the kennels.

“I’m coming.” He said out loud, though the dog couldn’t understand what he was saying.

Luke walked into the back and saw one of the dogs trying to paw at the door. He smiled and grabbed one of the leashes off the wall and made his way to the front of the kennel.

“You want to go on a small walk Lucky?” Luke asked the dog, getting a small bark in return.

Luke opened the kennel door just enough to get in. He hooked the leash onto Lucky’s collar and led him out of the kennel.

They walked towards the front of the store. Luke grabbed the keys and flipped the ‘open’ sign to ‘closed’ before walking outside.

It was a beautiful day out and Luke was glad for the outside air. Being outside was one of Luke’s favorite places to be, especially walking one of the hounds from the shelter.

Luke took Lucky around the block and returned to the shelter to find someone looking through the window.

“Can I help you?” Luke asked, startling the stranger at the window.

“Oh, I just, uh, wanted to go inside.” The stranger mumbled out.

“No problem.” Luke smiled at the stranger before unlocking the door. He brought Lucky inside and put him back into his kennel. Lucky was a little reluctant at first, but soon gave in when Luke gave him a treat.

“Good boy.” Luke said before returning to the front of the store. The stranger was looking at the group of kittens in the front of the building.

“Any specific pet you want to look at?” Luke asked making his way over.

“Oh, I don’t want to get any. I don’t have a place for them.” The stranger said sadly.

“Do you want to hold one of the kittens?” Luke asked, knowing that sometimes just holding an animal could make someone’s day.

“No thanks. I don’t want to get too attached.” The stranger said before walking out of the shelter. His shoulders sagged forward as he walked away.

“That was weird.” Luke said. One of the kittens meowed in agreement.

~~~

The next day, Luke showed up for work after receiving a text from Ms. Delilah. She had mentioned something about a wild night and didn’t know when she would get back.

Luke was sitting behind the counter, reading a pet’s magazine, when he heard the bell above the door ring. He looked up and saw the same guy from yesterday. Luke saw that his hair was a blue color today. He couldn’t remember if he had noticed that yesterday.

“Hey again.” Luke greeted, getting out from behind the counter.

The stranger didn’t say anything as he watched the kittens play.

“Hello?” Luke asked, stopping where he was to give the stranger some distance.

Luke was about to say something again when he heard a sniffle. The stranger reached up and wiped away something from his face. Then Luke realized that the blue-haired boy in front of him was crying.

Luke instantly felt awkward. He didn’t know how to comfort the other person in the room. Luke knew how to take care of animals. He didn’t know much about other people.

“Can I hold one of them?” The stranger said, trying to sound like everything was okay.

“Of course.” Luke said before grabbing a kitten and handing it over to the blue-haired boy.

He took it and held the kitten close to his chest. He started to pet it which seemed to calm both of them down.

“My name’s Luke by the way.” Luke said, trying to create conversation in the silence.

“Michael.” The guy, Michael, whispered. Luke could still hear the sadness in his voice.

“You’re welcome to stay Michael.” Luke said, wanting to have some company for a little bit during the day.

“I can’t.” He said simply before handing the kitten back to Luke and leaving the store.

Luke looked down at the kitten and saw that it had fallen asleep. He put the small fluff ball back into the kennel and silently hoped that Michael would be okay.

~~~

It had been a week since Luke had seen Michael, which was weird considering that Luke had worked the whole of last week.

Ms. Delilah had gotten back earlier in the week, but Luke kept working, hoping for another chance to see Michael.

Luke was mopping the floors after hours when he heard a knock on the door. He was about to turn them away when he saw who it was.

“Michael.” Luke said, though Michael couldn’t hear him.

Luke quickly unlocked the door and let Michael in. Luke was about to greet him when Michael pulled Luke into a hug. Luke was still for a moment before he hugged Michael back.

Luke held Michael close. Michael hiccupped and sniffled before pulling back.

“I’m sorry.” He said, turning to leave.

“Wait.” Luke said, causing Michael to stop in his tracks. “What’s wrong?”

Michael didn’t say anything or even turn around.

“People just don’t stop in, look at kittens, then leave suddenly. There’s gotta be something wrong. I don’t know what it is, but I want to help you. I don’t want you to feel lonely.” Luke said, not really knowing where any of it was coming from. But he did know that he meant every single word.

Michael turned around and looked at Luke with blood-shot eyes.

“I, I can’t.” Michael said, turning his head to the floor and hurrying out of the building.

Luke felt dejected, not even the meow of the kittens could cheer him up this time.

~~~

“Do I tell someone about Michael?” Luke asked the wide-eyed puppy watching him.

The puppy barked before starting to chase its tail. Mercy spun around and accidentally knocked over her water bowl.

Luke sighed before grabbing a towel and mopping up the spilled water. He grabbed her water bowl and refilled it. She licked Luke’s hand as he placed the bowl back down.

Luke looked at the front door when he heard the bell ring. He really hoped it was Michael, but was quickly disappointed when he saw a lady walk into the store. Luke put on a fake smile and walked towards the lady.

“Welcome to the Pet Co. How may I help you?” Luke asked.

“I want a puppy.” The lady said simply. She smiled at Luke before he led her to the kennel of small puppies.

“Here they are ma’am.” Luke said, stepping aside so the lady could get closer.

“They’re so beautiful.” The customer said before reaching down to grab Mercy from the litter of puppies. “But this one is my favorite.”

“She’s a handful.” Luke said, reminding her that the puppy was a responsibility not just another purchase.

“She’ll do just fine.” The lady insisted.

Luke smiled before heading to the back to get a kennel for the pup. He came back out to find the lady looking at the different supplies for owning a dog. She grabbed a couple things from the shelves and made her way to the counter.

Luke quickly checked her out and wished her good luck with her puppy. Mercy seemed excited to leave, but Luke could’ve sworn that she had a look of sorrow on her face as she left the shelter.

Luke smiled, happy that he could help another wonderful pet find a home. Just then Michael came running through the door. The smile on Luke’s face immediately fell.

“Michael. Are you-- ?” Luke wasn’t able to get out another word before he felt Michael press his lips to his own.

“I’m sorry.” Michael said, pulling away from Luke and running out the door.

Luke stood dumbfounded, but quickly regained his senses. He had to follow Michael. There was no other choice.

“I’ll be right back.” He told the animals as he ran out and locked the door. He turned the way he saw Michael go and quickly found his bright blue hair.

Luke broke into a run and tried to catch up with Michael. Just when Luke thought he was getting closer, Michael would speed up and turn down a new road. Luke kept following him and didn’t let up until Michael had to stop to catch his breath.

Luke cautiously walked up to Michael and sat next to him underneath a tree.

“Go away.” Michael whispered, turning his back on Luke.

“Michael.”

“No Luke. Get away from me.”

Luke was hurt by Michael’s words, but he wasn’t going to give up.

“Michael. Please. Talk to me. I care about you.” Luke said.

“We’ve been over this Luke.” Michael took a shaky breath. “I’m not worth your time. I’m not worth anyone’s time. I always mess things up and I can’t do anything right. You should just give up now and save yourself the hurt.”

Luke sat next to Michael, unmoving. He was unsure what to say. So he didn’t say anything.

Luke moved so he was sitting in front of Michael. Michael looked up at Luke with blood-shot eyes.

Before he knew what he was doing, Luke grabbed Michael’s face and pressed their lips together. It was a sweet simple kiss, and it didn’t last long.

“Luke—”

“Shh. I love you Michael. I’m right here and I’m not planning on going anywhere. I’m going to help you get through whatever the hell it is you’re going through. But I do know this. You’re going to have to work a lot harder than that if you want to get rid of me.”

Michael smiled at Luke and kissed him softly. Luke kissed him back, knowing that he trusted Michael with all his heart.


End file.
